Overview

The IGLUS Executive Master is a unique degree offering a comprehensive and professional approach to sustainable governance of large urban systems

A Global Framework

Carefully selected urban governance experiences from around the world constitute as opportunities for city managers to become exposed to different and innovative ways of approaching urban systems’ governance. Each of the seven cities in which IGLUS takes place addresses urban systems’ governance from a particular angle. Taken together, this global learning journey makes up for a complete and comprehensive approach to urban governance.

7 Cities, 7 Urban Challenges

Cities and urban agglomerations are complex socio-technical systems of infrastructures (transport, water, waste, energy, housing and greens). Infrastructures play a central role in the global competitiveness of cities. They are key to achieving the performance, attractiveness and quality of life of urban systems in terms of their Efficiency, Sustainability and Resilience. The IGLUS Executive Master offers a unique opportunity to learn about innovative approaches to governing and managing complex urban infrastructures, both theoretically and practically. The Master program is structured around seven cities, each of which stands for a particular challenge and focuses on one particular performance dimension.

Training Series

Besides enrolling for the Executive Master, you can also enroll for only one of the IGLUS modules. Upon successful participation in a module, participants will be awarded a Certificate of Attendance among from top 20 raking universities in the world, jointly issued by EPFL and the IGLUS-partner University in the host city.

Modules Map (upcoming)

Modules overview

Click on a map marker to obtain more information about a module.

Mexico module

18 – 29 June 2018Social Challenge & Resilience

In the Mexico module we address, in particular, the social challenges prevalent in all cities. Particular attention is paid to the question of how addressing the social challenges can make cities more resilient. The two weeks spent in Mexico City are organized in collaboration with Tecnologico de Monterry.

Participants will attend lectures, workshops and field visits throughout their 11 day training. The following four infrastructures and topical areas are the focus of this modules:

Transportation and urban mobility

Housing and land use

Green infrastructures

Citizen involvement and social resilience

NYC – Detroit Module

4 – 16 Sep 2017Economic and Financial Challenges & Sustainability

In this module we address the economic and financial challenges that all large urban systems are facing. Particular attention will be paid to making urban infrastructures economically and financially sustainable. The Detroit week is organized in collaboration with Michigan State University, while the New York City module is organized together with City University of New York.

Participants will attend lectures, workshops and field visits throughout the 11 days of training. The following four infrastructures and topical areas will be covered:

Water, wastewater and waste

Housing

Transportation

From decline to renewal

Kampala Module

15 – 26 January 2018

Kampala is one of the fastest growing cities in the world. According to recent estimates, the night-time population is 1.5 million but this could reach 9.1 million people as soon as 2050. Kampala already produces over 60% of GDP for Uganda as a whole. Therefore, well-managed urbanisation provides the single biggest opportunity for growth for Uganda in the coming decade. Improving infrastructure to enhance connectivity and density will support productivity growth in the city and thus for the country overall. However, these improvements will require large investments. Therefore, the main questions in the context of Kampala are:

How can rapidly growing cities balance efforts between investing in infrastructure for the majority of the city that is still to be built in the future, versus retrofitting the parts of the city that are already there?

Which options do cities in resource-constrained economies have to finance infrastructure investments?

How can transportation and other infrastructures be introduced into already crowded environments?

Participants will attend lectures, workshops and field visits throughout the 11 days of training. The following four infrastructures and topical areas will be covered:

Transportation

Housing

Water

Energy

Dortmund-Lyon

module

9 – 20 April 2018

In the Dortmund-Lyon module we address the metropolitan challenge of the Rhine-Ruhr region that is quite typical for many urban agglomerations worldwide. Particular attention will be paid to making such regions more resilient, with a special focus on innovative governance approaches. This module is organized in collaboration with the Technical University of Dortmund.

Participants will attend lectures, workshops and field visits throughout the 11 days of training. The following infrastructures and topical areas will be covered:

Green infrastructures

Energy systems

Transportation systems

Governance of metropolitan regions

Istanbul module

13 – 24 Nov 2017Cultural Challenge & Resilience

Istanbul is a city of contrast and bridges, both typical of the cultural challenges (e.g., old versus new, East versus West, religious versus secular) most cities face today. In this modules, there will be a particular focus on how cities can become more resilient in light of such challenges. The Istanbul module is organized in collaboration with Istanbul Technical University.

Participants will attend lectures, workshops and field visits throughout the 11 days of training. The following four infrastructures and topical areas will be covered:

Transportation

Housing

Green infrastructures

Managing contrast and building bridges

Kuala Lumpur module

3 – 14 Apr 2017Technological and Cultural Challenges

The Kuala Lumpur module focuses on the big environmental challenges most cities face today. Particular attention will be paid to the question of how cities can be made environmentally sustainable, while simultaneously addressing wasteful consumption patters and promoting innovative technologies. This module is organized in collaboration with Multimedia University.

Participants will attend lectures, workshops and field visits during 11 days of training. The following four infrastructures and topical areas will be covered:

Energy

Water, wastewater and waste

Transportation systems

Environmental and financial sustainability

Seoul module

20 – 31 August 2018Technological Challenge & Efficiency

In the Seoul module we address the technological challenges that all large urban infrastructure systems face today. Particular attention will be paid to the role information and communication technologies play in making cities more efficient. This module is organized in collaboration with the Sungkyunkwan University.

Participants will attend lectures, workshops and field visits throughout the 11 days of training. The following four infrastructures and topical areas will be covered:

Water, wastewater and waste

Energy systems

Transportation systems

Smart and cognitive cities

The next module will take place in Kampala from 15 – 26 January 2018.

Logistics

The IGLUS Mexico module will take place both weeks in Mexico City, Cuidad de Mexico Tecnologico de Monterrey campus. We advise you to fly to Mexico City International Airport. Several local companies are operating this flight on a daily basis (Aeromexico for example)

Logistics

For this module we advise you to fly to Dusseldorf International Airport, since Dortmund airport does not have a lot of connexions. A train runs every 30 minutes from directly Dusseldorf Airport to Dortmund Central Station. Tickets have to be bought on the platform and there is no need to book them in advance. Regarding the accommodation, we advise participants to stay either at NH Hotel, TRYP Hotel, B&B Hotel or UNIQUE Hotel

Logistics

We advise you to fly to Incheon International Airport or Gimpo International airport if you are coming from Asia. We recommend you to stay to the following hotels for your stay in Seoul: CenterMark Hotel